Arts briefs

Celebrate the arrival of winter at TwispWorks’ second annual Winterfest on Saturday (Dec. 28), from 4 p.m. until “late” at the Twisp campus. Sit around the fire and enjoy art, music, food and drink. Cost is $5 to $10 on a sliding scale. Volunteers are needed. For more information, call 997-3300.

… and then go dance at the Barn

Get a head start on celebrating the new year at a live rock-and-roll dance party on Saturday (Dec. 28) in the Winthrop Barn. The free event begins at 7 p.m., is scheduled to end at midnight, and is open to those 21 years of age or older. There will be a no-host bar. The band will include about 15 local musicians, including three simultaneous drummers, a horn section, diva vocalists and out-of-town visiting “ringer” professionals, according to Frank Vander Wall, one of the organizers. For more information, call (509) 341-4484.

Exhibit at Sun Mountain

The winter exhibit opening at The Gallery at Sun Mountain Lodge will be celebrated Sunday (Dec. 29) from 4-7 p.m. in the Pasayten Room foyer. Eight local and regional artists are displaying their work. For more information, call 997-7005.

Brady in free performance

Local pianist Michael Brady will contemplate 50 years of playing the piano, and demonstrate what he’s learned, at a free event he’s calling “A Half-century at the Piano: A Progress Report,” on New Year’s Day at the Merc Playhouse in Twisp. The concert begins at 2 p.m. Brady, an amateur pianist (and lawyer by profession) from Winthrop, will perform pieces by Schubert, Brahms and Mendelssohn, will pay tribute to some of his teachers, and will share some thoughts about a thing or two he has discovered along the way. “It all began in 1963, when Mrs. Jacobsen showed me how to find middle C,” Brady said, “and I’ve been exploring ever since.” For more information, call 996-5002 or email mbrady@methownet.com.